One of the BEST

Sail Date:
February 2013

Destination:
Europe - Western Mediterranean

Embarkation:
Rome (Civitavecchia)

NCL"s Jade provided us with a memorable experience in Feb. Gary, our Cruise Director , was excellent at his job & turned up everywhere ... from introducing the production shows, to hosting Game Shows, to giving lectures on our ports.
The entertainment was superb. The "Anytime Dining" really was THAT & we always
obtained the "table for 2, near the window, that we requested.
Our Cruise Critic experience worked out so well. There were 90 of us at the Meet & Greet, attended by most of the ship"s officers.
One CC member had arranged 3 Tours that we participated in & each was a wonderful value: a walking Tour of Athens, a night at the Sultana Nightclub/restaurant(which included free transportation & a night tour around Istanbul -all lit up.
The oter was a Tour of Ephesus, Maty"s House, & the Terrace Houses - all with a knowledgable guide- Begun. It also included a 3 course Turkish lunch.

The seas were very calm throughout and the ship"s Captain was quite More
visible.
The food was good at the 2 Min Dining rooms , as well as the Buffett.
The staff were pleasant, friendly, and seemed to like working on the Jade.

Boarding was quick & efficient , as was disembarking.
I found the Ship"s Tours expensive & we took only one - a Tour in Istanbul to
the Grand Bazaar & the Blue Mosque. More time would have been good at the Grand
Bazaar, however, we stopped at a rug factory showroom for a longer time ( 90
mins.) than we had at the Bazaar( 60 mins.). That was bazaare!

I"d recommend this ship and its itinerary to all, especially experienced cruisers who would appreciate its value. Less

Cabin review: Norwegian Jade

Port and Shore Excursions

We walked to the local train station & took the train into Athens where we were met by the Walking Tour Guide- George. He knew his stuff and recounted the history of Athens in a pleasing manner. We walked to various historical sites with him ,ending at the PARTHENON, where some of us left the group , having been there several other times. He walked us back to the train station where we made our return trip back to Piraeus, about 45 mins.

Blue Mosque

Grand Bazaar

Our guide met us at the port in a new Van. As we journeyed to Ephesus, she gave us a wealth of information about the area. We first went to Mary"s House, which was
a basic stone cottage with a holy water fountain.spiggot.
Following that, we traveled about 10 mins. to Ephesus, which was a spectacular site It allowed us to visualize how folks lived 2 thousand years ago.
next, we visited the Terrace Houses , which were unearthed a few years back and are being reconstructed to showcase the mosaic floors and wall frescoes.
After a typical Turkish lunch ( with the requiset carpet factory tour), we went to St. John"s Basilica.
Our guide was FANTASTIC and always conscious of the comfort of her passengers. She was a wealth of information rendered in an easy going manner.

We 7 were in a private van driven by Marcello. He talked incessantly !! He did NOT listen. He grew up in Sorrento and new his way around the area. we saw quite a number of towns along the Amalfi Coast while Marcello droned on & on ...
By the time we got to Pompeii, it was ouring rain , so we 7 decided not to take a tour there. Marcello took us to an old Villa nearby & showed us frescoes & msaics that were being restored until the funding ran out. We retruned to the ship at 4:30 - ehausted, more from listening to Marcello than from the area covered.